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vom Haus Winheim: Dedication - Obedience - Gallantry
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The World
Union of German Shepherd Dog Clubs (WUSV) Breed Standard |
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General Appearance: |
The German
Shepherd Dog is medium sized. With the hair pressed
down, the height at the withers is measured by stick
along the vertical as it follows the line of the elbow
from the
withers to the ground. The ideal height at the withers
is 62.5 cm for males and 57.5 for females. An allowance
of 2.5 cm over or under is permissible. Exceeding the
maximum as well as not meeting the minimum diminishes
the working and breeding value of the dog.
The German Shepherd is slightly long, strong and well
muscled. The bones are dry and the structure firm. The
ratio of height to length and the placement and
structure of the limbs
(angulation) are so balanced that a far-reaching,
effortless trot is guaranteed. He has a weather proof
coat.
A pleasing appearance is desired as long as the working
ability of the dog is not called into question.
Sex characteristics must be pronounced, e.g., the
masculinity of the males and the femininity of the
females must be unmistakable.
The German Shepherd that corresponds to the Standard
offers the observer a picture of rugged strength,
intelligence and agility, whose overall proportions are
neither in excess or
deficient in any way. The way he moves and behaves
leaves no doubt that he is sound in mind and body and so
possesses physical and mental traits that render
possible an ever ready working dog with great stamina.
It is only possible for a practiced expert to ascertain
the presence of requisite working dog traits in the
German Shepherd. Therefore, only special judges should
be called upon, as it is
incumbent on them to judge the character of the dogs
brought before them. This should include a test for gun
soundness, as only German Shepherd Dogs that have
achieved recognized working dog titles may receive the
breed rating excellent.
With an effervescent temperament, the dog must also be
cooperative, adapting to every situation, and take to
work willingly and joyfully. He must show courage and
hardness as the situation requires to defend his handler
and his property. He must readily attack on his owner's
command but otherwise be a fully attentive, obedient and
pleasant household
companion. He should be devoted to his familiar
surroundings, above all to other animals and children,
and composed in his contact with people. All in all, he
gives a harmonious picture of natural nobility and
self-confidence. |
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Angulation &
Movement: |
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The German
Shepherd Dog is a trotter. His gait exhibits diagonal
movement, I.e., the hind foot and the fore foot on
opposite sides move simultaneously. The limbs,
therefore, must be
so similarly proportioned to one another, i.e.
angulated, that the action of the rear as it carries
through to the middle of the body and is matched by an
equally far-reaching forehand causes no essential change
in the top line. Every tendency toward over-angulation
of the rear quarters diminishes soundness and endurance.
The correct proportions of height to length and
corresponding length of the leg bones results in a
ground-eating gait that is low to the ground and imparts
an impression of effortless progression. With his head
thrust forward and a slightly raised tail, a balanced
and even trotter will have a top line that falls in
moderate curves from the tip of the ears over the neck
and level back through the tip of the tail. |
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Temperament, Character & Abilities: |
Sound
nerves, alertness, self confidence, trainability,
watchfulness, loyalty and incorruptibility, as well as
courage, fighting drive and hardness, are the
outstanding characteristics of a purebred German
Shepherd Dog. They make his suitable to be a superior
working dog in general, and in particular to be a guard,
companion, protection and herding dog.
His ample scenting abilities, added to his conformation
as a trotter, make it possible for him to quietly and
surely work out a track without bodily strain and with
his nose close to the
ground. This makes him highly useful as a multipurpose
track and search dog. |
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Head: |
The head should be in proportion to the body size (in
length approximately 40% of the height at the withers)
and not coarse, over refined or overstretched (snipey).
In general
appearance, it should be dry with moderate breadth
between the ears.
The forehead when viewed from the front or side is only
slightly arched. It should be without a center furrow or
with only a slightly defined furrow.
The cheeks form a gentle curve laterally without
protrusion toward the front. When viewed from above, the
skull (approximately 50% of the entire head length)
tapers gradually and
evenly from the ears to the tip of the nose, with a
sloping rather than a sharply defined stop and into a
long, dry wedge-shaped muzzle (the upper and lower jaws
must be strongly
developed.)
The width of the skull should correspond approximately
to the length of the skull. Also, a slight oversize in
the case of males or undersize in the case of females is
not objectionable.
The muzzle is strong; the lips are firm and dry and
close tightly.
The bridge of the nose is straight and runs nearly
parallel with the plane of the forehead. |
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Dentition: |
Dentition
must be healthy, strong and complete (42 teeth, 20 in
the upper jaw and 22 in the lower jaw). The German
Shepherd Dog has a scissors bite, e.g. the incisors must
meet each other in a scissors like fashion, with the
outer surface of the incisors of the lower jaw sliding
next to the inner surface of the incisors of the upper
jaw.
An undershot or overshot bite if faulty, as are large
gaps between the teeth. A level bite is faulty, as the
incisors close on a straight line.
The jaws must be strongly developed so that the teeth
may be deeply rooted. |
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Ears: |
The ears are of medium size, wide at the base and set
high. They taper to a point and are carried facing
forward and vertically (the tips not inclined toward
each other). Tipped,
cropped and hanging ears are rejected. Ears drawn toward
each other greatly impair the general appearance. The
ears of puppies and young dogs sometimes drop or pull
toward each
other during the teething period, which can last until
six months of age and sometimes longer.
Many dogs draw their ears back during motion or at rest.
This is not faulty. |
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Eyes: |
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The eyes are of medium size, almond shaped, somewhat
slanting and not protruding.
The color of the eyes should blend with the color of the
coat. They should be as dark as possible. They should
have a lively, intelligent and self-confident
expression.
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Neck:
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The neck should be strong with well-developed muscles
and without looseness of the throat skin (dewlaps).
The neck is carried at an angle of about 45 degrees to
the horizontal. It is carried higher when excited and
lower when trotting. |
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Body: |
The body length should exceed the height at the withers.
It should amount to about 110 to 117% of the height at
the withers. Dogs with a short, square or tall build are
undesirable.
The chest is deep (approximately 45 to 48% of the height
at the withers) but not too wide. The under chest should
be as long as possible and pronounced.
The ribs should be well formed and long, neither barrel
shaped nor too flat. They should reach the sternum,
which is at the same level as the elbows. A correctly
formed rib cage allows
the elbows freedom of movement when the dogs trots. A
too round rib cage disrupts the motion of the elbows and
causes them to turn out. A too flat rib cage draws the
elbows in
toward one another. The rib cage extends far back so
that the loins are relatively short.
The abdomen is moderately tucked up.
The back, including the loins, is straight and strongly
developed yet not too long between the withers and the
croup.
The withers must be long and high, sloping slightly from
front to rear, defined against the back into which it
gently blends without breaking the top line.
The loins must be wide, strong and well muscled.
The croup is long and slightly angled (approximately 23
degrees). The ileum and the sacrum are the foundation
bones of the croup. Short, steep or flat croups are
undesirable. |
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Tail: |
The tail is bushy and should reach at least to the hock
joint but not beyond the middle of the hocks. Sometimes
the tail forms a hook to one side at its end, though
this is undesirable. At
rest the tail is carried in a gentle downward curve, but
when the dog is excited or in motion, it is curved more
and carried higher. The tail should never be raised past
the vertical. The
tail, therefore, should not be carried straight or
curled over the back.
Docked tails are inadmissible. |
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Forequarters: |
The shoulder blade should be long with an oblique
placement (the angle at 45 degrees) and lying flat
against the body. The upper arm joins the shoulder blade
in an approximate right
angle. The upper arm as well as the shoulder must be
strong and well muscled.
The forearm must be straight when viewed from all sides.
The bones of the upper arm and forearm are more oval
than round.
The pasterns should be firm but neither too steep nor
too down in pastern (Approximately 20 degrees).
The elbows must be neither turned in nor turned out. the
length of the leg bones should exceed the depth of the
chest (approximately 55%). |
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Hindquarters: |
The thigh is broad and well muscled.
The upper thigh bone when viewed from the side joins the
only slightly longer lower thigh bone at an angle of
approximately 120 degrees. The angulation corresponds
roughly to the
forequarter angulation without being over angulated.
The hock joint is strong and firm.
The hock is strong and forms a firm joint with the lower
thigh. The entire hindquarters must be strong and well
muscled to be capable of carrying the body effortlessly
forward during
motion. |
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Feet: |
The feet are relatively round, short, tightly formed and
arched. The pads are very hard, but not chapped. The
nails are short, strong and of a dark color.
Dew claws sometime appear on the hind legs and should be
removed within the first few days of birth. |
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Color: |
Color should be black with regular markings in brown,
tan to light gray, also with a black saddle, dark sable
(black cover on a gray or light brown case with
corresponding lighter
marks), black, uniform gray or with light or brown
markings. Small white markings on the fore chest or a
very light color on the insides of the legs are
permissible though not desired.
The nose must be black with all coat colors. (Dogs with
little or no masks, yellow or strikingly light eyes,
light markings on the chest and insides of the legs,
white nails and a red tip of the tail or washed out weak
colors are considered lacking in pigment.) The undercoat
or base hair is always light gray, with the exception of
that on black dogs. the final color of a puppy is only
determined when the outer coat completely develops. |
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Coat: |
a) The medium smooth coated German Shepherd Dog
The outer coat should be as thick as possible. The
individual hairs are straight, coarse and lying flat
against the body. The coat is short on the head
inclusive of the ears, the front of the legs, the feet
and the toes but longer and thicker on the neck. The
hair grows longer on the back of the fore- and hind legs
as far down as the pastern and the hock joint, forming
moderate reaching on the thighs. the length of the hair
varies, and due to these differences in length, there
are many intermediate forms. A too short or mole like
coat is faulty.
b) The long coated German Shepherd Dog
The coat is considerably longer than that of the
long-smooth-coat. It is generally very soft and forms a
parting along the back. The undercoat will be found in
the region of the loins or
will not be present at all. A long coat is greatly
diminished in weatherproofing and utility and therefore
is undesirable. |
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Faults: |
Faults include anything that impairs working
versatility, endurance and working competency,
especially lack of sex characteristics and temperament
traits contrary to the German Shepherd Dog such as
apathy, weak nerves or over excitability, shyness; lack
of vitality or willingness to work; monorchids and
cryptorchids and testicles too small; a soft or flabby
constitution and a lack of substance; fading pigment;
blues, albinos (with complete lack of pigmentation, e.g.
pink nose, etc.) and whites (near to pure white with
black nose); over and under size; stunted growth;
high-legged dogs and those with an overloaded fore
chest; a disproportionately short, too refined or coarse
build; a soft back, too steep a placement of the limbs
and anything depreciating the reach and endurance of
gait; a muzzle that is too short, blunt, weak , pointed
or narrow and lacks strength; an over-or undershot bite
or any other faults of dentition, especially weak or
worn teeth; a coat that is too soft, too short or too
long; a lack of undercoat; hanging ears, a permanently
faulty ear carriage or cropped ears; a ringed, curled or
generally faulty tail set; a docked tail (stumpy) or a
naturally short tail.
The above standard was approved and put into effect for
the countries and clubs of the FCI. The name of the
breed is the German Shepherd Dog. The country of origin
is Germany. |
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From SCHUTZHUND USA March/April 1989
"The German Shepherd Standard" by:
Morton Goldfarb USA/SV/AKC Judge |
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THANK YOU Laycee..!! |
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A very
special THANK YOU to our niece Laycee for this awesome
graphic...!!! |
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